The Chamber started working with the council around a month ago to look at the state of the economy nationally and to see how it would affect Sheffield.

Mr Tomlinson said: "We looked at what the council and everybody else will have to do to alleviate any pressures and how we are going to react to any problems.

"The whole purpose is not to sit back and wait for any type of downturn in the economy to come and hit us – that would be remarkably stupid.
"It's about what this city needs to do to be proactive. We have had 10 years of remarkable growth and need to look at what exactly we are going to be facing."

The industries likely to be hit worst by the credit crunch are construction, real estate, retail, leisure, hospitality and finance.
But general manufacturing and the public sector are stationary and those involving the environment, creative digital industries and advance manufacturing are actually on the up.

There have been some initial 'pinches'. Some hotels have started feeling the squeeze and have cut the price of rooms while people are taking longer to pay invoices.

But Mr Tomlinson says some industries are still booming and that's a good sign as during a big recession, everything suffers.
"The overall view is yes, the forces at work have caused a downturn in certain sectors but not in other sectors.

"The whole situation started with banks and mortgages so real estate, construction and property have been hit first.

"But we have seen success stories in other sectors. Advance manufacturing is at an all time high while creative digital industries and environmental industries are expanding.

"General manufacturing is usually one of the first to face a downturn but some sectors of it are bucking the trend and other areas are stagnant."

The city is in a stronger position because it no longer relies on one huge industry, such as the steelworks which were wiped out in previous recessions.

Mr Tomlinson said: "Not every sector is affected and the big difference this time is we didn't put all our eggs in one basket.

"That was one of the things we set out to do to make sure we never again relied on one industry."

But with the situation changing daily, no one is able to predict what is going to happen over the next few months.

"A lot of people are saying this global issue is like nothing they have seen before.

"Confidence is fragile because people look at the news and see the situation in the US and in the markets. There's a need for positive momentum and increased flexibility.

"It's a cautious but not critical situation.

"We have to be adaptable and help businesses as much as we can and be there for them."